As a physician who has worked in this community for 23 years, I am pleading for all who are able to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
Right now, Cattaraugus County has the highest rate of COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began. Our hospital is overwhelmed with COVID patients, most of whom are unvaccinated and many of whom are intubated.
With Mercy Hospital closed, beds in Buffalo are in short supply and transferring patients is not the easy option it was in the past.
This is a crisis that was preventable. If more people were vaccinated, far fewer people would be hospitalized. The vaccine isn’t our only tool in this crisis, it’s just the best one we have. I think that people are tired of hearing about this virus and aren’t aware that it is at such a crisis point.
There is a staffing shortage at Olean General Hospital, but this is largely because of the pandemic. Our hospital is struggling financially, as are rural hospitals across this country due to the pandemic. The elective surgeries that OGH is cancelling are one of its best sources of income.
The longer this goes on, the more it threatens the viability of a full-service hospital in our community.
The COVID-19 vaccines are among the most effective vaccines at preventing serious illness and death from a disease ever developed, especially the mRNA vaccines. They have been used on millions of people with a great safety profile.
These vaccines are our best hope at stopping the pandemic.
Dr. AnnMarie Zimmermann, Portville
